An siRNA ribonucleoprotein is found associated with polyribosomes in Trypanosoma brucei

  1. APPOLINAIRE DJIKENG1,
  2. HUAFANG SHI1,
  3. CHRISTIAN TSCHUDI1,2,
  4. SHUIYUAN SHEN1, and
  5. ELISABETTA ULLU1,3
  1. 1Department of Internal Medicine,
  2. 2Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, and
  3. 3Department of Cell Biology, Yale University Medical School, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8022, USA

Abstract

Genetic interference by double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) or RNA interference (RNAi) triggers the sequence-specific degradation of cellular transcripts. The mediators of mRNA degradation are small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). Here, we report that in Trypanosoma brucei, 10%–20% of siRNAs cosediment with polyribosomes. Preventing the assembly of ribosomes on mRNAs results in a concomitant decrease of siRNAs sedimenting as high-molecular-weight complexes. We further provide evidence that siRNAs are associated with translating ribosomes and that this association is mediated by a 70-kD ribonucleoprotein complex.

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  1. doi: 10.1261/rna.5270203 RNA 9: 802-808 Copyright 2003 by RNA Society

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